KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The College of Charleston softball team swept through its first day in the Tennessee Tournament on Saturday with wins over Holy Cross and Campbell, extending its winning streak to nine games.
The Cougars (14-7 overall) batted .339 on the day in order to outhit their opponents, 19-10, en route to 5-2 and 4-2 wins over the Crusaders and Camels, respectively.
“Right now our players are capitalizing in crucial situations,” said head coach Linda Kalafatis. “We are doing the three main phases of the game really well – pitching, defense, and timely hitting – and it's resulting in Ws.”
Kelsey Hodgson and Rebecca Mueller accumulated four hits apiece in the two games and Hodgson, Carly Hansis and Chandler Frisbie each drove in two RBIs.
In the game one win over Holy Cross, the Cougar bats exploded for 13 hits, their penultimate offensive performance of the year, led by Lizzy Vaughn (2-for-4), Mackenzie Maples (2-for-4) Hansis (2-for-3), Mueller (2-for-4) and Hodgson (2-for-3) who all picked up two hits and Hodgson contributed two RBIs. Vaughn was a catalyst for the Cougars with a leadoff homer in the top of the first inning.
Freshman Samantha Martin (5-1) earned the game one win after pitching the first four innings and striking out four hitters while only allowing one earned run.
Senior Hope Klicker tossed a complete game in the second contest and scattered four hits while striking out three. Frisbie put the Cougars on the board with a two-RBI double in the early going, and a two-run homerun off the bat of Hansis in the sixth inning was the difference late in the game.
“Our hitters came up big in clutch situations with a few clutch hits when we needed them,” said Klicker, a junior captain. “That helped set the tone and get us momentum heading into the late innings. I felt that when we got the extra runs to go up 4-2, the intensity changed. Defensively we made some awesome plays. Overall, when we come up clutch in those big situations and get the momentum in our favor, it's hard to stop us.”
The Cougars will wrap up tournament competition on Sunday with games against Western Kentucky and No. 3 Tennessee.
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON: 5, HOLY CROSS: 2 (Box Score)
Vaughn's leadoff home run gave the Cougars a desirable quick start, but CofC would still have to battle from behind after conceding runs in the bottom of the first and third innings. CofC responded with run-scoring rallies in the fourth and fifth, plating two runs in each frame to stretch the 5-2 lead.
Vaughn pulled the second pitch of the game out to right field for the eighth home run of her career, but the Crusaders responded immediately with an RBI triple by Kelliner Croushore to tie the game at 1-1 before the second inning.
Holy Cross birthed a fleeting lead in the third after a two-out Cougar fielded error extended the inning and the Crusaders were opportunistic with back-to-back singles to take a 2-1 lead.
CofC responded in the next half inning with leadoff singles by Mueller and Chandler Frisbie, followed by a two-RBI single to center by Hodgson after a passed ball put the runners in scoring position.
The Cougars ensured their lead in the fifth with a leadoff single by Vaughn followed by an RBI double by Mackenzie Maples. Hansis then singled to put runners on the corners, and the Cougars executed a double steal to push the lead to 5-2, the eventual final.
Valerie Cassell (second save of the season) relieved Martin in the fifth inning and pitched a perfect three innings by not allowing a hitter to reach base and striking out six of the nine batters she faced.
COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON: 4, CAMPBELL: 2 (Box Score)
The Cougars would have to come from behind yet again in game two, and with the score tied 2-2 in the bottom of the sixth, Hansis lifted a one-out offering to deep left to propel the Cougars to victory.
Campbell's Courney Klingler contributed the first run of the game with a one-out home run to straight away center field in the second inning.
CofC responded right away, however, by putting its first three hitters aboard in the bottom of the inning by way of a Hansis walk and singles by Mueller and Hodgson. Frisbie then jumped on the first pitch she saw and rocketed it over third base all the way down the line to the corner in left for a two-RBI double.
The Camels leveled the score in the fourth with a leadoff single by Emilia Martinet backed up by a double to left center by Klingler. A ground ball towards the hole between first and second base plated the game-tying run, but a diving play by Katie Padilla in the hole prevented further damage.
The tie carried into the sixth until Hansis delivered her second long ball of the year with a runner aboard for the 4-2 advantage, and Klicker iced the Camels in the seventh to secure the win.
Over the nine-game winning streak, the Cougars are batting .300 as a team and the pitching staff is limiting opposing hitters to a .174 batting average while maintaining a 0.82 ERA. The pitching corps has also struck out more hitters than it has allowed hits over that span.
